Sulasol

Sulasol (officially Suomen Laulajain ja Soittajain Liitto, the Finnish Amateur Musicians' Association) is a Finnish registered association founded in 1922 that serves as the national umbrella body for amateur choral and instrumental music. It brings together roughly 350 choirs and orchestras and around 12,000 individual members, making it one of the central institutions of Finland's amateur music scene. Its membership base spans mixed choirs, male choirs, female choirs, children's choirs and instrumental ensembles, and it works alongside five affiliated music associations and a number of independent member organisations. The association operates as a service, advocacy and publishing hub for its members. It maintains a sheet-music shop and a monthly sheet-music offer (Nuottiklubi), runs an events calendar, organises the Kuorogaala (Choir Gala) with public voting categories such as Newcomer of the Year and Music Video of the Year, and administers the Klemetti Award, a EUR 2,500 recognition for individuals who have distinguished themselves in Sulasol and musical activity, funded through the Hopiala named fund. It also engages in broader cultural-policy projects; one example is the large-scale Kaikki laulaa – Alla sjunger initiative funded by the Finnish Cultural Foundation and Svenska kulturfonden, which works with so-called Singing Municipalities. Sulasol is headquartered in Finland and communicates primarily in Finnish, with Swedish-language elements reflecting the country's bilingual musical life. It is a non-profit membership association rather than a commercial company, but it functions as a brand in the Finnish music sector through its publishing, events and member services. Its long history, dating to the early 1920s, places it among the oldest continuously operating amateur-music organisations in Finland.

Sulasol was founded in 1922 as Suomen Laulajain ja Soittajain Liitto, the Finnish Amateur Musicians' Association. From its early years it served as a coordinating body for Finland's amateur choral and instrumental music movement, which had grown rapidly in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries alongside the country's national awakening and its strong tradition of voluntary singing and playing societies. Over the following decades the association developed into a national umbrella organisation. It built a membership structure that today encompasses approximately 350 choirs and orchestras and around 12,000 individual members. Its affiliated environment includes five music associations — for male choirs, female choirs, children's choirs, mixed choirs and instrumentalists — as well as 17 independent associations, reflecting the breadth of Finnish amateur music-making. In the modern era Sulasol has combined traditional member services with publishing, events and cultural-policy work. It operates a sheet-music shop and a monthly sheet-music offer known as Nuottiklubi, maintains an events calendar, and organises the Kuorogaala, an annual choir gala at which awards such as Newcomer of the Year, Music Video of the Year and Event of the Year are decided partly by public vote. It also administers the Klemetti Award, a EUR 2,500 prize awarded from the Hopiala named fund to individuals who have distinguished themselves in Sulasol and in musical activity. More recently Sulasol has engaged in large-scale development projects. One prominent example is Kaikki laulaa – Alla sjunger, funded by the Finnish Cultural Foundation and Svenska kulturfonden, which works with municipalities to strengthen singing and playing. The association continues to publish news and member communications in Finnish, with Swedish-language elements, and remains active as of the mid-2020s.

• 1922

  Sulasol (Suomen Laulajain ja Soittajain Liitto) is founded as the Finnish Amateur Musicians' Association.

• The association grows into a national umbrella body representing roughly 350 choirs and orchestras and about 12,000 individual members.

• Sulasol operates a sheet-music shop and the Nuottiklubi monthly sheet-music offer.

• The Kuorogaala choir gala is organised with public voting categories including Newcomer of the Year and Music Video of the Year.

• The Klemetti Award, a EUR 2,500 prize from the Hopiala named fund, is administered by Sulasol.

• The Kaikki laulaa – Alla sjunger project, funded by the Finnish Cultural Foundation and Svenska kulturfonden, begins with the first four Singing Municipalities.

National umbrella and service organisation for Finnish amateur choral and instrumental music.

• Nuottiklubi sheet-music club

  A monthly sheet-music offer for members, featuring themed collections such as Christmas songs.

• Kuorogaala

  An annual choir gala with awards decided partly by public vote, including Newcomer of the Year, Music Video of the Year and Event of the Year.

• Klemetti Award

  A EUR 2,500 recognition for individuals who have distinguished themselves in Sulasol and musical activity, funded by the Hopiala named fund.

• Kaikki laulaa – Alla sjunger

  A large-scale project funded by the Finnish Cultural Foundation and Svenska kulturfonden, working with Singing Municipalities.

1. 1Sulasol official websitesulasol.fi
2. 2Sulasol on Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Sulasol on French Wikipediafr.wikipedia.org